A LEAP OF TRUE FAITH FOR YIRAS SHOMAYIM
A great example of Rav Leibele's yiras shomayim (fear of heaven) is a story told about him in his youth, as a young avreich in his father-in-law's home, as he sat studying Torah.
Oblivious to his surroundings, he did not notice that he had a visitor. It seems that the wife of the local duke had come to see Rav Leibele's wife about some matter. After knocking and receiving no answer, she pushed open the door and was mesmerized by the Tzaddik's singsong voice as he learned, totally absorbed.
Eventually, she grew somewhat annoyed that he had not even noticed her, and she made her presence known. Rav Leibele saw her and, not knowing who she was or why she had come, he thought of only one thing – he was now alone with a woman who not modestly attired and who was not his wife! His eyes darted to the door but she was standing in front of it and seeing no other escape from the issur yichud (prohibition of being alone with a woman), he did the only thing he could: he jumped out of the second-story window to the ground below. I believe he limped for the rest of his life. But his immeasurable mesirus nefesh and yiras shomayim is a lesson for us for all generations.
